Lake Sidetracks. OUTINGS.

Sport Climbers Reach New Heights In Lake Forest

August 29, 1993|By Jodie Jacobs. Special to the Tribune.

Hanging in his harness, his hand sweaty, Tom Ditzler, 37, a construction consultant from Mundelein, dipped his fingers into the chalk bag at his waist and stretched. A nearby rock hold seemed just out of reach. Gripped. Yes! But with an overhang looming above, Ditzler still had to figure out the best route to the top of the climb.

Just a few minutes earlier, Megan Crockett, 19, a Wheaton College sophomore from Lake Forest, had scrambled up in a few seconds, making the climb look deceptively easy.

Ditzler and other adventurous souls, from experienced climbers to first-timers, have been challenging the 11 faces of Mt. Scout in Lake Forest since it opened to the public in mid-June. And sometimes, like Crockett, they've tamed the hardboard mountain.

A soaring 32 feet of mottled brown board, stone-like finger holds and skill-defining overhangs, Mt. Scout is Lake Forest High School's recently completed system of climbing walls. Located in a corner of a new gymnasium that was part of a multimillion-dollar renovation, the climbs are the pride of outdoor education director and rock climber Mark Samuels.

Wall climbing, more recently known as sport climbing, has been part of Lake Forest High School's outdoor education program since 1975. "We had one before it was the popular thing to do," Samuels said, referring to a wall built by his predecessor, Lloyd "Skip" Attwell.

But it was not until a large new gym and new climbing system was completed late in the spring that it became practical to open the wall to the public. "We wanted to share our wonderful facility with the community," Samuels said.

He found that the community extended from Chicago to southern Wisconsin. "It's word of mouth. We get people from Chicago to Kenosha," Samuels said.

"You get a good workout," Ditzler said. "It puts together strength, balance, agility. But it doesn't take brute strength. You use your legs more than your upper body."

The advantage of the wall over the real thing is accessibility, Ditzler said. "And you don't have to go out and buy a lot of expensive equipment," he added.

To sport climbers, the advantage of attempting the harder climbs indoors is safety.

A rope is secured at the top of the climb (top roping). One end is attached in a figure-eight knot to the harness, which must be correctly buckled. The other rope end is attached to a person called a belayer, who tightens the tension or lets out slack according to the climber's needs. And most important, the belayer brakes the rope to prevent falls.

"With top roping, the only way to get hurt is through carelessness," said veteran climber Dennis Laurie of Mundelein. "Sport climbing allows you to do things at a harder grade without danger."

The harness includes a chalk bag. As with gymnasts, it dries the fingers for better gripping, less slipping.

And a climber could get sweaty palms with all those other people watching and waiting to climb.

Crowded means 30 climbers. "We can't handle more," said Samuels, who estimated that nine people can climb at one time.

"The others watch or help belay. You need 15 minutes dead time. You have to rest. And people socialize. It's become a social thing," he said.

Top roping? Belayer? The words sound foreign, but a $10 on-the-spot lesson will get a person up the wall. And down. So don't worry about lack of experience.

And youth is not a factor, according to Samuels. "Climbing can be done by all ages," the instructor said. "I have a woman in my climbing (continuing education) class who is in her 60s. And I have had 8-year-olds" climbing the wall.

Equipment also is not a problem. The outdoor education department rents shoes and a harness, complete with chalk bag. Helmets, required protection against the wall and other climbers, are lent free.

The open session for fall is 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday Sept. 1 through Nov. 17. Season passes are $50 for high school-age students, $75 for adult residents and $100 for adult non-residents. An extra $25 covers equipment rental for the season. Drop-in rates are $5 for high school-age students, $8 other school district residents and $10 for adult non-residents. The $5 rental package includes harness, shoes and chalk bag.